took up; taken up; taking up; takes up
2
a
: to begin to occupy (land)
b
: to gather from a number of sources
took up a collection
3
a
: to accept or adopt for the purpose of assisting
b
: to accept or adopt as one's own
took up the life of a farmer
c
: to absorb or incorporate into itself
plants taking up nutrients
4
a
: to enter upon (something, such as a business, hobby, or subject of study)
take up skiing
took up the trumpet
b
: to proceed to consider or deal with
take up one problem at a time
5
: to establish oneself in
took up residence in town
6
: to occupy entirely or exclusively : fill up
the meeting was taken up with old business
7
: to make tighter or shorter
take up the slack
8
: to respond favorably to (a person offering a bet, challenge, proposal, etc.)
took me up on it
9
: to begin again or take over from another
we must take the good work up again
1
: to make a beginning where another has left off
2
: to become shortened : draw together : shrink
Synonyms
Examples of take-up in a Sentence
Verb
please take up the blanket so I can look underneath it
the soil was so dry that the plant seemed to take up the much-needed water instantly
Recent Examples on the Web
Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 3 Aug. 2023
Yet take-up of the newest COVID boosters, which target the BA.4 and BA.5 variants that dominated last year, is slow: Only 17% of the U.S. have gotten the booster, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
—Nicholas Gordon, Fortune, 20 June 2023
At the 10% take-up rate, projected spending on this one drug alone would exceed spending on the top 10 Part B drugs in 2021 and would represent close to half of the total $40 billion spent on the 600+ Part B covered drugs in 2021.
—Medora Lee, USA TODAY, 1 June 2023
Funding markets had been showing signs of stress, though pressures have subsided with the take-up of emergency measures.
—Craig Torres, Fortune, 23 Mar. 2023
The benefits one person wants and needs can greatly vary from what another person wants and needs—which is why variety (and knowing each benefit’s take-up rate) is key.
—Mike Kappel, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2023
Meredith Goldstein, BostonGlobe.com, 8 Sep. 2023
The timing of the filings on Friday means the justices could take up the case in the term that begins the first week in October.
—Ann E. Marimow, Anchorage Daily News, 8 Sep. 2023
The event starts with a ceremony at the park’s flagpole before a 2,200-step walk, symbolizing the steps that first responders took up the 110 flights of stairs in the World Trade Center.
—Maura Fox, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Sep. 2023
It’s billed as a family vacation, about 1,200 miles from Jersey, as the gang takes up residence in a swanky townhouse in Miami Beach.
—Mark Heim | Mheim@al.com, al, 7 Sep. 2023
On workforce development, Ontario has been working to ensure Americans that take up new studios and soundstages coming on stream have local talent and crews to service their production shoots.
—Etan Vlessing, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 Sep. 2023
The Senate took up 16 of those articles and will decide his fate in the coming weeks.
—Anna Giaritelli, Washington Examiner, 7 Sep. 2023
Though the legal settlement requires Pinterest to take up inclusive product projects, diversity projects inside tech companies can feel less than urgent to executives focused on profits.
—Paresh Dave, WIRED, 7 Sep. 2023
Lozano took up the challenge of leading the Mexican national team even though it was mired in one of the most profound crises in its history.
—Abraham Nudelstejer, Dallas News, 28 Aug. 2023
See More
Noun
The study notes that there was a slowing in the take-up of SVOD services like Netflix and Disney+, and there are indications that viewing declined in 2022, along with most other forms of viewing as total viewing fell.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 3 Aug. 2023
Yet take-up of the newest COVID boosters, which target the BA.4 and BA.5 variants that dominated last year, is slow: Only 17% of the U.S. have gotten the booster, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
—Nicholas Gordon, Fortune, 20 June 2023
At the 10% take-up rate, projected spending on this one drug alone would exceed spending on the top 10 Part B drugs in 2021 and would represent close to half of the total $40 billion spent on the 600+ Part B covered drugs in 2021.
—Medora Lee, USA TODAY, 1 June 2023
Funding markets had been showing signs of stress, though pressures have subsided with the take-up of emergency measures.
—Craig Torres, Fortune, 23 Mar. 2023
The benefits one person wants and needs can greatly vary from what another person wants and needs—which is why variety (and knowing each benefit’s take-up rate) is key.
—Mike Kappel, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2023
Verb
The universe gets even bigger if a difficult relationship isn’t taking up all the space.
—Meredith Goldstein, BostonGlobe.com, 8 Sep. 2023
The timing of the filings on Friday means the justices could take up the case in the term that begins the first week in October.
—Ann E. Marimow, Anchorage Daily News, 8 Sep. 2023
The event starts with a ceremony at the park’s flagpole before a 2,200-step walk, symbolizing the steps that first responders took up the 110 flights of stairs in the World Trade Center.
—Maura Fox, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Sep. 2023
It’s billed as a family vacation, about 1,200 miles from Jersey, as the gang takes up residence in a swanky townhouse in Miami Beach.
—Mark Heim | Mheim@al.com, al, 7 Sep. 2023
On workforce development, Ontario has been working to ensure Americans that take up new studios and soundstages coming on stream have local talent and crews to service their production shoots.
—Etan Vlessing, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 Sep. 2023
The Senate took up 16 of those articles and will decide his fate in the coming weeks.
—Anna Giaritelli, Washington Examiner, 7 Sep. 2023
Though the legal settlement requires Pinterest to take up inclusive product projects, diversity projects inside tech companies can feel less than urgent to executives focused on profits.
—Paresh Dave, WIRED, 7 Sep. 2023
Lozano took up the challenge of leading the Mexican national team even though it was mired in one of the most profound crises in its history.
—Abraham Nudelstejer, Dallas News, 28 Aug. 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'take-up.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
Noun
1832, in the meaning defined above
Verb
14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of take-up was
in the 14th century
Dictionary Entries Near take-up
Cite this Entry
“Take-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/take-up. Accessed 23 Sep. 2023.
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Kids Definition
take-up
1 of 2 nounˈtā-ˌkəp
1
: a device in a sewing machine for drawing up the slack thread as the needle rises in completing a stitch
2
: a device for winding photographic film on a reel, core, or spool
take up
2 of 2 verb(ˈ)tā-ˈkəp
1
: to begin to occupy
took up their positions
2
: to begin to engage in : undertake
took up swimming
3
: to absorb or incorporate into itself
plants taking up water and minerals
4
: to pull up or in so as to tighten or to shorten
take up the slack
Medical Definition
take up
transitive verb
: to absorb or incorporate into itself
the rate at which the cells took up glucose
take-up
noun
Legal Definition
take up
transitive verb1
: to pay the amount of (as a note) : pay in full for
2
: to proceed to deal with
take up a motion
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